Birds, Flowers, and a Bet
by Gwyn Just
Summary: Lieutenant Maria Ross takes a walk, only to have it interrupted! Havoc and Brosh are feeling down about their lack of girlfriends, so they make a bet; may the best lady's man win! My first EVER fanfic, please read and review!
1. A Walk

Second Lieutenant Maria Ross sat at her desk, finishing some paperwork. Her pen scratched determinedly across her paper, tolling the near completion of her report. But a warm breeze blew outside, beckoning her to go for a walk; it was almost lunch break, but she had to finish this document. She was so behind; keeping track of the Elric brothers really ate up her time for other things, like recording what they did. It seemed like as soon as she had a spare moment to work on reports, Edward was off on another bold mission, and she would have to follow him. This invariably forced her to work odd hours, especially times when Ed had a day off. Which left her little time for her other hobbies. She put a hand to her forehead, bending low over her desk. _Just a couple more pages..._

...Within five minutes, her mind had wandered, and she found her self staring blankly at her work. With a sigh, she put the papers in their folder. "I'll be more focused after a walk..." she said to herself as she put the folder in her desk. She stood up and, not bothering to grab her coat, and headed for the park.

She turned the corner towards the doors, and almost ran into Major Alex Louise Armstrong. Snapping to attention, she said "Sir! I will be taking my break, with your permission." The monstrous man smiled through his blond mustache, pink sparkles forming around him as he said in his deepest, most gracious voice, "Of course, Second Lieutenant. Get your creativity flowing... the spring air will be good for your focus!" He patted her on the shoulder, and she staggered and nearly fell under the weight. Straightening up, she managed a "Yes sir! Thank you sir!" and hurried on her way.

Trying to keep herself from breaking into a trot, she headed for the huge front doors of Central Headquarters, which had been left open a bit to air out the front hall which, though it was a large room, had gotten slightly stuffy over the winter, as all rooms seem to do. She could smell it now, the new, clean scent of spring. As soon as she had crossed the threshold, she allowed herself a small smile and a sigh of relief. She trotted down the steps and turned onto the sidewalk, heading for her favorite place in the world. It took all of her military-ingrained self-control to not stop and spin around with her arms held wide and face to the sky, like a giddy child who had been cooped up too long.

"Armstrong may be odd, but he sure was right," Ross mumbled to herself, tipping her head back to enjoy the breeze rippling through her short brown hair. She was strolling down a mulched path through the woods, in a small community park just outside of headquarters. This was her refuge. When her work was impossible to focus on, when Sergeant Brosh was being unbearably annoying, or when she just needed a _break_, this was the place to come. The tall oak trees provided a refreshing shade when it was too hot, and sheltered her when it rained unexpectedly. The sound of the birds chirping and squirrels chattering as they went about their days was always relaxing. No one really knew it, but Ross truly was a down-to-earth woman, literally. She liked nothing better than to walk through these woods and contemplate deep things, bird-watch, or, sometimes, just _be_.

Suddenly Ross heard running footsteps behind her, and turned. And that's when it all came crashing down.

oOo


	2. Organizing the File Cabinets

_Author's Note: This chapter is for Anemone Sorel, the sole voice of encouragement other than my real-life friends, the only one who has expressed intrest in me continuing the story. I'm sorry it's so horribly late, Anemone!! :( Anyway, you rock girl! Everybody else, Review, or else I will send the coyotes after you. Yes, I'm talking about the coyotes that eat plot bunnies. :D_

"Lieutenant! Wait up!" It was none other than Sergeant Denny Brosh tearing down the path, kicking mulch everywhere and making a nearby squirrel chatter furiously. Ross rolled her eyes. _Leave it to Brosh to ruin my break._ Brosh had caught up to her now, and was leaning over, hands on his knees, breathing hard. Ross put on her most formal expression, and asked stiffly, "Yes, Sergeant, what is the matter?"

"I just thought you might like a walking companion." Brosh smiled what he thought was a dashing and somewhat flirtatious smile.

"I appreciate the gesture, Sergeant, but I prefer solitary walks." Though she kept stiff and formal, she chuckled inwardly. _Wow, he really is desperate. _Brosh looked as though someone had just told him that Valentine's Day was eternally canceled. "But, I mean, aren't you... lonely?"

"Not in the slightest."

"Uh, okay then... I'll just, uh, I'll just head back to headquarters then..." his eyes lit up slightly once more. "I'm almost finished with my report! You know… the one you requested..."

"Yes. Thank you Sergeant."

"You're welcome." Brosh smiled again, only to see that Ross was scowling at him. He sighed. "Well, I better get going..." he turned and walked off in the direction of Central Headquarters. Fifteens steps away, he looked back and asked, barely keeping the pleading out of his voice, "Are you sure you don't..."

"Brosh..." Ross scowled harder.

"Yes sir!!" Brosh saluted, then turned and walked away from her. If he had been a dog, his tail would have been between his legs.

Maria sighed. So much for a peaceful and Denny-less stroll in the park. She sat down on a nearby park bench, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath of afternoon air. The chickadees chirped around her, and the squirrel who had shrieked at Bloch went back to his acorn-gathering. The sounds were nice, but the bliss of the afternoon had been shattered. She sighed again. _Well, I guess I should go finish that report..._ She stood and, with one more deep breath of woodsy air, left the park.

oOo

Denny Bloch whimpered. _How could he have screwed up so horribly??_ He couldn't understand why Maria didn't like him. He was funny, smart, handsome... or so he thought, anyway. What was he doing wrong? He wandered back to headquarters, hanging his head in shame and despair. Glancing up as he started up the steps, he noticed a person dressed in blue, sitting on the ground and leaning up against a tree to the right of the building. A burned out cigarette was hanging limply from the person's mouth. _Looks like Havoc's been dumped again,_ thought Brosh. _Well, they always say misery loves company._ He headed for the Lieutanant, plopping himself down next to Havoc with a discouraged _hlmph._ Havoc didn't acknowledge his presence. "So, Havoc… got dumped again?"

"Uh-huh." Havoc looked up, noticing that Brosh looked rather defeated too. "What about you? You don't look so great…"

"It's Maria. She hates me. Why??" Denny let the question trail off. He sighed. "It's not fair. The colonel never seems to have a problem getting a girl. What has he got that we haven't?"

Havoc was still looking blankly forward, wrapped in his own little word of despair. "A girlfriend?"

"Besides that, Havoc!" Brosh was getting mad now. He continued, allowing himself to rant. "I mean, we're just as good as him! Why don't we get any luck? What do the ladies see in him anyway?"

"Let's see… he's a mysterious, yet charming COLONEL who has good taste in food and theater, not to mention his abundance of money? While I'm a freakin' poor Lieutanant! You're right! It's not fair!!" Havoc was mad too now… honestly, why DID Mustang have more girlfriends than him or Brosh?

"I've got it!" Brosh said. "We know we can find women… we're smart, handsome, funny… right? Right! So, let's go for it!! In fact, let's make a bet. I'll wager twenty that I can get a date before you can!"

Havoc perked up a bit. He liked gambling. "Okay, you're on! I'll match your wager! May the best lady's man win!"

oOo

Lieutanant Ross sighed with relief and she finally wrote the last words of her report. She had been documenting the travels of the Elric brothers, by request of Major Armstrong, who she suspected was ordered to do so by Colonel Mustang. Ross was no nitwit… she knew that the Colonel was watching the Fullmetal Alchemist's every move. First Lior, then Youswell and Xenitime… the young alchemist was certainly creating a name for himself… and it was interesting how all that Edward did seemed to inadvertently help the Colonel in some way… Ross shook her head a bit to clear her thoughts. It wasn't exactly her place to be guessing Colonel Mustang's plans. She paused a minute to look at her watch. She was close to being done for the night. Maria looked around her office, thinking of what to do with her last half-hour at work. She decided to re-organize some old file cabinets, an easy job that would leave her mind to wander. It was Thursday, and she was planning to go bird-watching in the next town on the weekend. She thought about how relaxing it would be… away from her coworkers, the stress of her job, and the noisy headquarters… Maria sighed just thinking about it.

Before she knew it, the last half-hour of the day had passed. She grabbed the old nature guide she had found while digging through her file drawers, her purse (which was more like a tote bag… Maria wasn't a purse-type girl) and her coat, and headed out of the office. For the second time that day, she nearly ran into someone in the hallway. This time, however, it was Brosh.

_Hah, here's my chance!!_ Brosh thought. This would be the perfect time to ask Maria out. He could already see them, talking, laughing, kissing, in a cozy little café somewhere…

"I'm leaving for the day, Sergeant. I'll be expecting that finished report on my desk by sometime tomorrow," Ross said stiffly, as she swerved to walk past Brosh without stopping. She really didn't want to deal with Denny again… once a day was more than enough for her. Not to mention all the times they had to follow the Elric brothers together…

"But, I…" Denny was at a loss. How could she have bypassed him… _again??_ But he allowed himself a small smile… for he had noticed the book that Maria was holding, titled "Birds and Wildflowers of Central Amestris". Denny knew exactly the thing that he could do to impress Maria… and maybe, just maybe, get her to go out with him.

oOo


End file.
